(AK) Flint Hills to shut down North Pole refinery

[unhappycamper]

http://www.adn.com/2014/02/04/3307051/flint-hills-to-shut-down-north.html



A fuel transport leaves the Flint Hills Resources North Pole Refinery on Monday, May, 12, 2008.

Flint Hills to shut down North Pole refinery
By LISA DEMER
February 4, 2014 Updated 6 hours ago

The Flint Hills oil refinery in North Pole will reduce operations over the next several months and then shut down, and the company is blaming the high cost of doing business in Alaska and expensive issues with contamination that it says it inherited from the prior owner.

Flint Hill Resources Alaska LLC announced Tuesday it would shut down one of its two remaining units on May 1, ending its production of gasoline, and will shutter the second unit no later than June 1, ending production of jet fuel and other products. Two other units had closed earlier.

The refinery closure will cost the Fairbanks North Star Borough a top employer and taxpayer and Stevens Anchorage International Airport one source of locally produced jet fuel. But the impact on the Alaska Railroad, which now ships Flint Hills fuel, was unclear.

Flint Hills says it will hold onto its terminals and will bring in gasoline and jet fuel from Outside.